Baby Expo Lands Five New Cities
Bebe Paluzza takes some of American Baby expos locations
By Stephanie Corbin -- Tradeshow Week, 6/22/2009
One producer of baby and toddler expos has left the field, leaving another producer an opening to expand its operation to new cities.
Bebe Paluzza, which produces the IndyBabyExpo twice each year in Indianapolis, will expand its expos to five new cities next year: Chicago, Houston, Atlanta, Denver and Des Moines, Iowa.
“We look to be the largest and premier maternity, baby and toddler shows,” said Jenn Kampmeier, founder of Bebe Paluzza.
She added her company heard last month that Meredith, which produced the American Baby & Family Expos, no longer would produce the shows it had in Chicago, Boston, Atlanta, Phoenix, Houston and Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. Meredith produced the expos, formerly known as American Baby Faire, for 17 years.
“We were already in talks with Des Moines and Denver,” Kampmeier said.
Bebe Paluzza planned on expanding its expos to three new locations, she added, but with the void in the market in cities where shows already had been established, Kampmeier said she saw an opportunity.
“We're having them at the same locations (as Meredith's shows),” she added. “There's already been a template put in place.”
The American Baby & Family Expos generally drew more than 100 exhibitors each.
“We made the decision to discontinue our support for the (shows) based on the current economic marketplace, as well as external feedback from our retail partners and major sponsors who were looking for new and innovative experiential events to reach the millennial mom marketplace,” said Patrick Taylor, spokesman for Meredith. “We are currently developing new concepts and programs, which we expect to announce in the coming months.”
Bebe Paluzza hasn't announced the dates and venues for its new expos next year, but Kampmeier said those details would be released within the next month.
“We are very excited to launch Bebe Paluzza into a national market,” she added. “Our expos are created on a personal level, so attendees not only connect with the exhibitors, but also with other moms and dads. This makes them unique and marketable across the states.”
IndyBabyExpo launched in 2007, and Kampmeier said expanding the shows was part of her overall strategy.
“This has always been in our business plan,” she added. “It's a very sustainable show. ... We have shown profit every show we've had.”
The economy also is having an impact on the shows, which has contributed to the expansion to new cities.
“We're getting ready to go into another baby boom because of our economy,” Kampmeier said. When the economy gets bad, she added, people tend to stay home more.
